hutterite culture's embrace of solar power makes perfect sense - 18 watt solar led street light

These shacks are ambitious industrial areas. -scale farmers.
There are 20,000 acres of farms on this green land, running a pig and chicken company and a company called Crowfoot Plastics. -of-a-
Plastic recycling plant, just outside Bassano, Alberta.
By David Dodge and Dylan Thompson, you've seen them before, although they often don't stand out. Hutterites --
Women wear bright, identical clothes, and men wear gloomy, dark jackets and hats.
On Saturday mornings, they almost always sell fresh eggs, carrots and potatoes at farmers'markets.
The quaint image of this quiet man is a stereotype that many of us know, so I took my curiosity and expectation along the road to southeastern Alberta to visit the largest solar farm in Western Canada, Hartlett Colony on the Green acre.
These shacks are ambitious industrial areas. -scale farmers.
There are 20,000 acres of farms on this green land, running a pig and chicken company and a company called Crowfoot Plastics. -of-a-
Plastic recycling plant, just outside Bassano, Alberta.
When I arrived, Dan Hoff, the "treasurer" of Green acres, and his brother, Jack Hoff, the electrician of Green acres, greeted me.
Together with them was David Warney, chief operating officer of Skyfire Energy, which installed Colonial 2. -
Megawatt solar system.
There are about 80 people in the green acre colony.
Breakfast and dinner are public, while lunch is at home, where I stew, bread and a glass of wine with Dan Hoff.
Later, they showed me a close tour of the solar farm.
This is a complete picture.
More than 7,600 solar modules, row by row, face south.
It was a blue field, sitting there quietly, catching the sun and powering the future of the colonies.
With that in mind, Jack Hoff had a smile on his face.
"It's still hitting me," Jack Hoff said.
"Yes, you look at the system day after day, nothing is moving, no moving parts, but it creates all the energy.
"From the point of view that Hartlett culture is beautiful, once you have a better understanding of Hartlett culture, their embrace of solar energy is completely meaningful.
"Every livelihood in our colonies is a treasure and very important," said Dan Hofer. ". . .
You grow and supply your own meat, you grow and supply your own gardens and vegetables as much as possible, so[solar power]
It belongs to the same category, it is itself. -sufficient.
You depend on your own resources.
You don't depend on others. . . . "Building a 2-
The megawatt solar system is a bit more ambitious than potatoes.
It requires an investment of $4.
Eight million dollars.
But after careful analysis, the figures seem to add up very well, and the bank agrees.
"We did this for economic reasons," says Dan Hoff.
"They have no problem at all.
After looking at some data and how the economy works, they expressed their full support.
As for the environment, Dan Hoff says that the essence of solar cleanliness is gravy: "We are all polluters of the land, so the reward is good. "
"For project developer Skyfire Energy, the project is the first in scale.
"The solar energy resources here are the best in Canada," Warney said.
"There will be 50% or 60% more systems installed here than in Germany, where there will be more solar energy than anywhere else in the world.
South Alberta also has the best wind resources in Canada.
So why did the colonies choose solar instead of wind, "Maintenance is a big problem," Jack Hoff said with a laugh.
"I'm very afraid of Gao.
"In order to invest in the future with a keen business sense and DIY attitude, Green Acres push the cost limit of solar energy.
They got an original offer to build their 2. -
Megawatt solar power plant, $2.
80 watts, but reduced to $2.
40 watts through their own labor.
Dan Hofer said that if electricity prices remained low, the return would be 15 years; if electricity prices began to rise, the return would be 10 years.
It turned out that I wasn't the only solar tourist on this day.
Out of economic interest, first nationalities from all over Alberta are also visiting solar farms to think about their own projects.
"I think because of this system, because of this leap in green land, we've seen a growing interest in these types of systems and projects of this scale," Warney said.
"It raises'What is possible'to a new level, and many people are paying attention to it and emulating it. "
"Ontario has now phased out coal and has significant solar penetration," Vonesch said.
By the end of 2014, Ontario had installed 2171 megawatts of solar energy and built 939 megawatts of solar power plants, far ahead of Alberta, with a total of about 8 megawatts.
Rumor mills are full of speculation about new supportive renewable energy policies that will come from the new Alberta and federal governments.
"In the first half of this year, in the United States, solar energy was the largest new energy source to enter the grid. -
Competitive winds and natural gas, "Warney said.
"It is the largest source of new energy in the United States.
Many predict that Alberta and Canada will seek renewable energy sources and begin to eat into soaring greenhouse gas emissions.